THE TOKYO INTERNATIONAL CONDUCTING COMPETITION in 2024

Participant Profiles vol.3

No.158

KOBAYASHI Yuta

Japan / Born on December 18, 1997

Yuta graduated from the Department of Conducting, Tokyo College of Music. He was accepted into the Nippon Steel Arts Foundation, 2021 Young Conductor Development Support Program as a conducting researcher. He has performed with the Kanagawa Philharmonic Orchestra, Yokohama Sinfonietta, and the Philharmonic Chorus of Tokyo, among others. From April 2021 to March 2024, Yuta was an assistant conductor for the Kyoto Junior Orchestra. In October 2022, he became an assistant conductor for the Kanagawa Philharmonic Orchestra. Yuta participated in the 58th Besançon International Competition for Young Conductors. He has studied under Junichi Hirokami, Tatsuya Shimono, Ryusuke Numajiri, Toshifumi Tashiro, and Nobutaka Masui.



No.170

JEONG Sunwoo

Korea / Born on March 12, 2002

Sunwoo, studying Orchestral Conducting in her final year at the Korea National University of Arts, has studied under Chiyong Chung and Moyoung Koo.
She was a finalist in the Korea Conducting Association Inc.’s Conducting Camp. Moreover, she has participated as an assistant conductor in KNUA Opera <Don Giovanni>. She has also performed with the Academia Classica KNUA （the Alumni Orchestra of Korea National University of Arts）, among others.



No.171

OKAZAKI Hiroki

Japan / Born on November 28, 1998

In March 2021, Hiroki graduated from the Department of Vocal Music of the Tokyo University of the Arts Faculty of Music. In April of the same year, he took admission into the Department of Conducting in the same faculty. He was a prize-winner in the Student Music Concours of Japan, High School Vocal Division. In January 2024, Hiroki won first prize in the 2nd “Mt. Fuji Virtuosos” Conductor Audition. He has studied under Kazufumi Yamashita, Shigeki Miyamatsu, Ken Takaseki, Tatsuya Shimono, and Shigeo Genda.



No.176

MURAKAMI Fumitaka

Japan / Born on July 6, 1995

In March 2023, Fumitaka graduated from the Faculty of Music, Tokyo University of the Arts. He has studied under Kosuke Tsunoda, Yuki Takai, Kazufumi Yamashita, and Ken Takaseki. In piano, he won the silver medal in the D-Level in the National Finals of the PTNA Piano Competition. He led the Cambodia Project organized by the Worldship Orchestra as a conductor. He has also conducted the Kwansei Gakuin Symphony Orchestra and performed with violinist Ryu Goto. Since October 2023, he has served as conducting researcher for the Tokyo City Philharmonic
Orchestra.



No.208

Mikhail MERING

Israel / Born on October 2, 1991

Mikhail graduated from the Moscow State Tchaikovsky Conservatory. After working as an assistant conductor with the Kostroma Symphony Orchestra, he studied under Vladimir Ponkin starting 2016. He has conducted the Bolshoi Theater Chamber Orchestra among others. He also plays the clarinet, which he studied under Ivan Mozgovenko and Philippe Cuper. As a soloist, he has performed with the Moscow Virtuosi State Chamber Orchestra, the Tchaikovsky Symphony Orchestra, and the Tokyo Symphony Orchestra, among others. In 2023, he won third prize in the 2nd Hong Kong International Conducting Competition.



No.209

Riley Holden COURT-WOOD

UK / Born on January 5, 1997

Riley graduated in violin from the Guildhall School of Music and Drama and then studied conducting at the Royal Northern College of Music. He has also studied at the Royal Conservatoire of Scotland. Riley has studied under Martyn Brabbins, Clark Rundell, and Colin Metters. In 2021, he was appointed resident conductor for the Muscat Royal Philharmonic Orchestra in Oman. He is also an assistant conductor for the BBC Scottish Symphony Orchestra.